Do you wake up in the morning tired? ?  Do you go to bed at night exhausted?  ? Does 3 PM hit and you’re ready for a snooze or need a coffee or yummy piece of chocolate? ☕️ ?

You’re not alone!

Maybe you recognize the feeling of exhaustion; the feeling of stress and wonder will it ever change?  Maybe you equate the tiredness to the cooling weather or recognize the stress  in your life and can’t ever seem change the tiredness no matter what you try.

I’ve been engaging with students in person and on social media digging into what REST means to people. Trying to find out what rest means  because it gives me guidance on what to share with the community. How can I serve you and what do you need to find REST, RELEASE AND CALM.

Rest…what does it mean to you??

How do you rest your body, mind and spirit?

Have you ever stopped to ponder how DEEP REST may access your  healing potential and provide stress release?

I am grateful to have so many people share with me their meaning of rest. I heard REST is:

✨  Sleep

✨ Connecting with nature

✨ Walking

✨ Reading

✨ Schedule nothing

✨ Yoga

Do any of these options sound like your definition of REST?

One answer that came up quite a few times was SLEEP.

What would you say if I told you that sleep does not always create deep rest for our body, mind and spirit?

If we are stressed and struggling it does not disappear when we go to bed. Your sleep will be restless and your body and mind will continue to spin.

I have heard from people who have participated in sleep studies and the results were they only access minutes of deep rest throughout the nigh.

This means they wake up fatigued and tired never having had deep sleep.

How do you access DEEP REST?

We are conditioned in society to push ourselves through exhaustion and to wear stress like a badge in order to achieve our goals and our dreams. If we don’t;  we are considered lazy or not really wanting to pursue our dreams.

What if I told you an integral part of finding your path and achieving your goals is to incorporate deep rest into your daily life?

I can hear you now…Misty…are you crazy???

Deep Rest is needed to reset our nervous system. The nervous system is the central intelligence of the body. If we live in the sympathetic nervous system (fight or flight) we are depriving our bodies of integral systems that need to be functioning.  When we create space for deep rest we are providing an opportunity for the body to come back online and begin to work properly. Living in a state of stress wreaks havoc on our bodily functions and creates more stress and we enter into a vicious cycle.

The cycle needs to be broken.

When we are ill or injured; our world shifts around us and we need DEEP REST even more.

My experience…

When I worked in law I met people who suffered from fatigue and I found it difficult to understand what that meant. I thought just go to sleep and be active this will bring in more balance. I had a bias and one that I did not recognize at the time.

Then life happened and my own experience shifted my bias.

What did I learn…fatigue is BRUTAL.

After being diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis I learned about true fatigue. I had pain and swelling all over my body but nothing was more detrimental to my health; physically and mentally.

Fatigue brought me to my knees and tears to my eyes every day. I did not understand why I could barely keep my eyes open after having slept through the night. Because of fatigue any activity I tried felt like my body was a lead weight and I could not function.

The fatigue from my illness showed me how much I needed something to soothe my soul as well as my body and mind.

Savasana

Then I found Savasana…

This was an opportunity for me to find DEEP REST.

At first when I started focusing on my Savasana I slept…and then I began to access a connection within myself and found the healing potential that laid within my own body.

So some of you may not be yogis and asking what the heck is Savasana????

Savasana is a Sanskrit word and when translated means corpse pose.  Who the h*!& wants to do a pose named after a corpse. Well let’s dive a little deeper to clarify it means.

Savasana is described as an asana (pose) in the Hatha Yoga Pradipika.  It states: “Laying down on the ground, like a corpse, is called Śava-āsana. It removes fatigue and gives rest to the mind.”  the literal translation of Savasana is sava = corpse asana = pose.

The idea of Savasana in the yogic way is the idea of surrendering and let die our unwanted thoughts, emotions that are within us. Savasana gives us the opportunity to consciously relax, dissolve the mind and let go of the ego.

Who’s in!! Raise your hand and CLAIM IT!

So what else is there to know about Savasana?

Well it is the KING of all restorative yoga poses. And we know how much I LOVE Restorative Yoga.

I also believe Savasana is one of the MOST CHALLENGING yoga poses you will ever encounter…

The reason I say it is the most challenging pose you will attempt is because you are quieting the body and the mind. Today’s society does not encourage us to quiet the body and the mind. Our egos chatter to us nonstop. This can be tough BUT I know you can do it!

When we are able to quiet the ego and turn inward the healing potential is unlimited. We unleash our own inner power and change our physical bodies and our own realities. Things become clearer and we release what is no longer serving us.

As you read this blog your response may be I CANNOT DO YOGA!

I am here to tell you there are multiple ways to do savasana to support whatever is going on in your body.  Savasana can be done in a chair, on your side, all the joints are supported in savasana and it is accessible to any body interested in finding stress relief, connection and DEEP REST.

I am so excited to share with you a mini exploration into Savasana.

Here’s what you will need to practice Savasana:

✨  4 Blankets

✨  Bolster or cushion or pillow

✨  Eye pillow or hand towel

✨  Two additional hand towels

Gather your stuff; find a quiet space and dive deep into this restful pose.

***CAUTION***

Be kind to yourself…it’s not an easy pose…your mind may wander, your body may not settle BE GENTLE TO YOURSELF..

There is no perfection to this pose BECAUSE it is a practice.

If you fall in love with the pose join me for an online Restorative Yoga Class 

I would love to hear how your exploration into Savasana was and any experiences you would like to share.

Much love & peace,

Misty